Lockdown
by britgirl2003
Summary: COMPLETE! A storm hits Newport Beach so Sandy, Kirsten, Seth and Ryan lock themselves up in the house for the night. How will they amuse themselves? Kandy fluff, family bonding, ninja-fighting on the playstation and even a game of scrabble!
1. Part One

**Disclaimer: I don't own The OC or its characters, etc. I took the name of this fic from an episode of ER, so I don't own that either!**

**Summary: A storm hits Newport, so Sandy, Kirsten, Seth and Ryan lock themselves up in the house for the night. It's set towards the end of season one – post-The Heartbreak and pre-Theresa, although the timing isn't too important. This is just a bit of fun! Hopefully I'll post the rest of the story this week.**

**I hope you enjoy it! **

**Lockdown**

Kirsten sat at the long table drumming her fingernails against the solid oak. She could hear a murmur of voices in the room but her mind was elsewhere. Outside, the wind was strong and through the windows she could see the branches of the trees waving wildly.

"Mrs Cohen?"

Kirsten felt a tap on her shoulder. She shook her head, focusing on her immediate surroundings. Slowly, she remembered where she was.

_Work. Meeting. Clients._

She bolted upright in her chair.

"I'm sorry?" she apologised, hoping her lapse in concentration had not been too noticeable.

"The figures? When can you have them done by?" a man in a dark suit asked her. She could hear slight agitation in his voice.

_Mr Taylor. Golf club development. Figures._

"How about by the end of next week?" Kirsten answered.

She waited as Mr Taylor paused, considering her offer. _Maybe that was too long? She should have suggested the beginning of the week, or the middle. _

"That sounds fine," Mr Taylor said eventually.

Kirsten sighed, relieved. She had no idea if getting the numbers was even possible, but at least he seemed happy. She ended the meeting as quickly as she could, grateful to get back to the safety of her office. She stood by the window and opened the folds of the blinds with her slim fingers. It was hard to focus on anything through the rain that had started to pour down. Large puddles were already starting to form in the car park below. The trees were moving in the wind, leaves floating in the air, being pushed in every direction. It was early in the afternoon but the usual California sun was hidden behind big black clouds and it was already dark outside.

Kirsten let go of the blinds and they snapped back into position. She wrapped her arms around her body and shivered. The weather report at lunchtime had threatened a huge storm. Kirsten hated storms – they were noisy and unpredictable, and she had seen them do a lot of damage.

Moving away from the window, Kirsten sat at her desk and picked up the telephone.

----------

Ryan ran across the schoolyard, his coat unsuccessfully covering him from the rain and his bag banging against the top of his thigh. The rain was starting to get heavier and his gym class had been cancelled. He came crashing through the doors to the cafeteria, glad to be inside. He spied Seth and Summer sitting on the sofas and made his way to meet them. They were so deeply engrossed in each other they didn't notice Ryan until he dumped his bag and coat on the floor and shook his head, covering them with drops of rain from his hair.

"Hey!" Summer cried.

Ryan grinned. "Sorry."

He flopped down on the sofa opposite them.

"Gym class was cancelled, huh?" Seth said, gesturing towards Ryan's wet clothes.

"Yep. And soccer practice," Ryan moaned.

"Great!" Seth said.

Ryan groaned inwardly at Seth's excitement.

"How about me and you take a little trip to the comic book store after school? The new Legion's out," Seth said.

Ryan smiled unenthusiastically. "Sounds great."

Seth clapped his hands in excitement and started babbling about superheroes. Summer picked up a magazine from the table in front of them and started to flick through the pages. Ryan closed his eyes and leaned back into the soft cushion of the sofa, only half-listening to Seth's ramblings. He was glad when Seth's cell phone interrupted him.

Seth fumbled around with his coat pocket, finally pulling out his phone.

"Hey cutie," Seth answered the phone, one eye slyly watching for a reaction from Summer. He was disappointed. She rolled her eyes and carried on reading her magazine without lifting her head.

"Seth?"

Seth paused, then sighed. "Hey Mom."

Summer's lips curled as she tried to suppress a smile and Ryan shook his head in amusement.

"I want you and Ryan to come straight home after school today, ok?" Kirsten ordered.

"Err, no can do, Mother. Ryan and I have a very important trip to the comic store planned," Seth answered.

Ryan opened his eyes at the sound of his name. Seth rolled his eyes in Ryan's direction.

"Not today, you don't. There's a big storm on the way and I want you both home before it hits," Kirsten said.

Seth opened his mouth to protest but closed it again. He knew that there was no way he would win this argument.

"Ok, we'll come straight home," Seth answered.

"I mean it, Seth," Kirsten warned.

"Straight home, I promise," Seth reassured her.

"Make sure Ryan knows," Kirsten said.

"He's sat right opposite me, Mom, I'll tell him," Seth said.

"Ok, I'll see you later."

"Bye, Mom."

"What was that about?" Ryan asked as soon as Seth had hung up. His mind was buzzing as he tried to think of a reason Kirsten would be mad and want them home straight from school. He hadn't been in a fight for weeks and for Ryan, that was quite an accomplishment.

"Mom wants us home straight after school," Seth said, his tone mimicking Kirsten's.

"Why?" Ryan asked.

"She says there's a storm-a-brewing," Seth explained. "Mom hates storms, she always has. So when one hits, she gets all neurotic and locks us all the house until it's over."

Ryan tried to imagine Kirsten neurotic. She was usually so together about everything, so in control. He couldn't imagine her getting worked up about something as small as a storm. The four of them locked in the house together? It was going to be an interesting night…

----------

"Mr Cohen, your wife is on the phone," a voice came through the speaker on his desk. Sandy stared at it. When he had worked in the PD's office, they had yelled through the door at him. At Partridge, Savage and Kahn there was no yelling. No excitement.

He picked up the telephone. "Hello beautiful."

"Hey," Kirsten's voice rang.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you were someone else," Sandy teased her. He could feel her smile through the telephone.

"You're not working late tonight, are you?"

Sandy held back a laugh. She was straight to the point, as usual. He had been expecting her telephone call all day after seeing the weather reports threatening a night of heavy storms. He had already rearranged his schedule for the day so that he would finish early.

"No, honey. I'll be home by 5," Sandy answered, hoping to placate her.

"Good. I called Seth, the boys will be home straight after school." She paused. "I'm over-reacting, aren't I?"

"Yes," Sandy answered without hesitation. "But in an adorable way."

Kirsten smiled ruefully. "I'm sorry, I just…"

"…don't like storms, I know," Sandy said gently. "Try not to worry, ok? We'll lock ourselves in for the night and force the boys to play scrabble and watch chick-flick movies."

Kirsten smiled. She loved the way he always knew what to say.

"I'd better go. I promised a client some figures by the end of next week," Kirsten sighed. "I'll see you at home."

"Bye, honey."

Sandy hung up the telephone and leant back in his ridiculously expensive leather chair. He looked at the big pile of case files that he had to get through before the end of the day and sighed. It was going to be a long afternoon…


	2. Part Two

**A big thank you to Steph, jen, yellowvalley, ally, Sunny, anon (whoever you are!) and FriendsHolic for reviewing. Here's the next part of the story. It's taking me longer than I thought to finish off the story, I've had a really busy week at university.**

**Enjoy!**

----------

Kirsten came through the front door at 4.47pm.

"Seth? Ryan?"

Ryan's head appeared from the kitchen and he saw Kirsten laden with large paper bags full of, what Seth called, "lockdown provisions". In other words, Kirsten had been to the grocery store and bought everything one might need in times of an emergency including what looked like enough food to last at least a week.

He grabbed the bags from Kirsten and took them into the kitchen, dumping them on the island. Sneakily, he poked through one of them to see what else Kirsten had bought and hid the smile that was threatening to creep across his face as he found candles, matches, even a ball of string.

"Seth, a little help!" Kirsten called out to her other son, who was still sat firmly on the sofa in the family room.

"I'm sure Ryan's got it covered, Mom!" Seth called back.

Kirsten rolled her eyes at Ryan. "Thanks," she said gratefully, as he took the next load of bags from her aching arms. "Is Sandy back yet?"

Ryan shook his head and disappeared back into the kitchen.

Kirsten frowned. He had promised he would be home by 5pm. She distracted herself with bringing in the rest of the shopping from the car – Ryan counted a total of nine bags – and busied herself putting it away, relieving Ryan from helping.

5.05pm. Sandy still wasn't home as Kirsten threw a dozen new batteries into one of the drawers.

5.17pm. Still no Sandy. Kirsten put away the four new torches she had bought.

5.23pm. Kirsten checked the answering machine. No messages.

"Seth? Ryan? Did your father call earlier and tell you he was going to be late?" Kirsten's head appeared around the corner of the family room where the boys were playing on the playstation.

Seth shook his head, his eyes concentrating on the screen in front of him. Ryan offered the simple of response of "No" without moving his head. Kirsten sighed.

"Ryan, why don't you go and grab whatever you need from the poolhouse for tonight. I want you to stay in the house," Kirsten ordered.

Ryan frowned, looking up from the television screen. "Why?"

"Because the poolhouse is made up of three walls of glass and there are gale-force winds outside, that's why," Kirsten snapped.

Ryan's eyes grew wide in surprise. Kirsten saw his expression and softened her tone. "Just humour me, ok?"

Ryan nodded and followed her instructions. He got up, pulling Seth with him.

"Hey!" Seth cried. Ryan was too strong for him and Seth unwillingly followed Ryan through the kitchen.

"Hey Mom, I'm hungry. What's for dinner?" Seth asked, wriggling out of Ryan's grasp to pause in the kitchen. "I was thinking Chinese. Thai, maybe?"

"Seth, do you really think anyone is going to be delivering tonight, in this weather?" Ryan asked, amused.

Kirsten waved two frozen pizzas at them. "It was the best I could do."

Ryan pulled Seth out of the back door towards the poolhouse before he had time to protest. Kirsten couldn't help but smile as she watched Seth struggle against Ryan's firm grip, still amazed that two boys who were so different could form such an unlikely bond. She pulled the pizzas out of their boxes and slid them into the oven. _Sandy would be home by the time they were ready. _

The telephone rang and Kirsten almost ran to pick it up.

"Sandy?"

"Kirsten? It's Julie."

Kirsten sighed. She couldn't deal with Julie Cooper right now.

"Now's not a good time, Julie. I, uh, I have something cooking," Kirsten knew it sounded pathetic but it was true!

Julie took no notice and started to ramble down the telephone about a new fund-raiser she had planned. Kirsten tucked the telephone between her ear and her shoulder, as she unpacked the last of the shopping bags.

----------

"Is this mine?" Seth asked, picking up a DVD of The Goonies that was tucked into one of Ryan's shelves.

"No, it's one of the spare ones from your Chrismukkah Seth Cohen Starter Packs," Ryan answered, as he pulled out some spare clothes to take across to the house. "Would you grab my school bag for me?"

"Is this my copy of Transatlanticism?" Seth asked, ignoring Ryan's question as he sifted through his CD collection.

"No, you bought me that as a 'Welcome to the Family' present, remember?" Ryan called from the bathroom as he collected his toothbrush. "Seth, my school bag? And can you grab my maths book too, please?"

Seth wandered over to Ryan's desk, his intentions good, but his mind easily distracted.

"Have you finished Kavalier and Klay yet?" Seth asked, picking it up from Ryan's desk and flicking through the pages.

"No. Seth! Could you try concentrating for just two minutes?" Ryan grumbled.

"Sorry," Seth scoffed. He grabbed Ryan's bag and textbook. "You're not really going to study tonight, are you?"

"What else are we going to do all night?" Ryan questioned.

"Uh, have some fun? A little Grand Theft Auto? A little ninja-fighting? Unfortunately, we don't have the new Legion but, fear not brother, I have the latest Batman and/or Spiderman – whatever you fancy?" Seth's voice was full of excitement.

Ryan shook his head in amusement as he followed Seth out of the poolhouse and back towards the house. The wind was getting stronger and the door to the poolhouse shut with a bang behind them. Ryan paused, waiting for the sound of smashing glass, but it never came. Caleb Nichol's McMansions were made of stronger stuff.

Seth and Ryan came through the door to the kitchen where Kirsten was still on the telephone to Julie. She pulled a face at them as they walked past her and up the stairs to the guest room.

5.46pm. Kirsten could hear Seth and Ryan laughing upstairs. There was still a droning sound in her ear. _Julie, get off the damn phone!_

5.57pm. Kirsten heard the sound of the front door.

"Julie, I've got to go," Kirsten said, hanging up before Julie could say anything else. She rushed out of the kitchen and saw a windswept Sandy in the front hallway.

"You're late," she scolded.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry," Sandy apologised as he shrugged off his jacket. He glanced up and saw the worry that was etched across her face. "I'm sorry."

He wrapped his arms around her and felt her sigh against his body.

"I'm just glad you're home," Kirsten whispered. She noticed that his body was just as tense as hers. "Are you ok?"

"Yeah. Just work, you know," Sandy sighed.

Kirsten ran her hands through his scruffier-than-usual hair and kissed his lips lightly. Sandy frowned.

"Do I smell burning?"

"Oh sh…"

Kirsten rushed back into the kitchen and pulled open the oven door. A cloud of smoke bellowed out and the alarms started to ring. Seth and Ryan rushed into the kitchen to find out what was going on.

Kirsten screwed up her nose as she pulled out the blackened pizzas.

"Well, Mother, I didn't think it was possible but you did it! You managed to burn a frozen pizza," Seth mocked, putting his arm around Kirsten's shoulder.

Sandy shot him a look, warning him not to antagonise her.

Kirsten sighed. "I'm sorry. How about I make us something else? Pasta, maybe?"

She started to sift through the cupboards. Sandy, Seth and Ryan looked at each other, an unspoken pact forming between them.

"You know what, why don't you sit and relax?" Sandy suggested, putting his arm around Kirsten's waist and steering her away from the kitchen. "The boys and I will make dinner."

Kirsten looked sceptically at them. "Really?"

"Absolutely," Ryan insisted, nudging Seth in the ribs.

"Sure," Seth agreed.

Kirsten settled on the sofa and flicked through the 500 channels until she found an art history programme. She listened as Sandy, Seth and Ryan moved around the kitchen. She could hear Seth telling them a story about Summer, with the occasional comment from Sandy. Every now and again, she heard her husband laugh and she knew it was because Ryan had shot him one of his "looks" that said everything he wanted to say but didn't have chance to with Seth around. She closed her eyes as she listened to her family converse and eventually drifted off into a slumber.


	3. Part Three

**Thank you to Christina, beachtree, ally, Rachel FriendsHolic and Sunny for your reviews! I think there will probably be two more chapters after this one – which is more than I first thought!**

**I hope you are still enjoying it!**

>>>>>

An hour later, Sandy ran his finger lightly across Kirsten's cheek. "Hey, dinner's ready," he said softly.

"Hmph," Kirsten groaned, her eyes slowly fluttering open. "Mmm, smells good."

"Fajitas!" Seth called from the kitchen.

"You ok?" Sandy asked quietly, taking Kirsten's hand and pulling her up off the sofa. She leaned into his body and nodded.

"Are all the doors and windows closed?" Kirsten asked as she shivered slightly.

"Yes."

"Are you sure? Have you checked?" Kirsten prompted.

"Yes, I checked them," Sandy reassured her. "Now sit and eat."

Kirsten sat down next to Ryan and opposite Seth; Sandy took the last place. A clap of thunder bellowed from outside, making them all jump slightly.

"So, what do you guys fancy doing tonight?" Sandy asked, trying to gloss over the tension.

Ryan shrugged. "What do you guys normally do on nights like this?" he asked.

Seth groaned. "Oh god! You're not going to make us play monopoly, are you?"

"No!" Sandy said vehemently.

Kirsten frowned. She opened her mouth to protest but Sandy interrupted her.

"I'm sorry, honey, but no monopoly. You get way too competitive."

"I do not!" Kirsten denied indignantly.

Sandy and Seth shared a look that Ryan interpreted as "Yes you do".

Kirsten glared playfully at them.

"How about a little jenga?" Seth suggested.

Kirsten rolled her eyes. "You always want to play jenga, and you always win."

"I know!" Seth grinned.

"How about a game of charades?" Sandy suggested.

A look of disgust spread over Seth's face. "What decade do you live in, Dad?"

"Hey, when I was a kid…"

"Oh god, what have I started?" Seth muttered.

Ryan sat quietly, amused as the banter between them continued during dinner. By the time they had finished eating, they were still no closer to thinking of a family activity to keep them entertained.

"What about you, Ryan? What do you want to do?" Kirsten suddenly asked him.

Ryan was aware of three pairs of eyes watching him. Seth was trying to catch his attention and Ryan could see him mouthing suggestions. Sandy started to chuckle at Ryan's discomfort.

"What do you normally do when there's a storm?" Sandy asked.

Ryan leaned back in his chair and pondered the question. A small smile crept over his face. "My mom would pile me and Trey into the car and drive us down to the ocean. We'd sit and watch the storm across the water for hours. We used to have this old camera and we'd take photos of the forks of lightning in the sky."

Ryan's expression glazed over as he remembered the few happy times that he had shared with his family.

"Sounds nice," Sandy said gently. Kirsten look across at him, terrified he was about suggest they went outside into the storm.

"It was…until mom pawned the camera for money to buy alcohol," Ryan said bluntly.

He got up from his seat and started to clear the plates from the table. Kirsten's eyes met Sandy's, and he knew that she was thinking the same as he was: that they could offer Ryan everything for the future, but they couldn't take away his past.

Kirsten stood up to help and silently they began to wash the dishes under the tap before putting them in the dishwasher. Sandy shook his head in amusement. He still didn't understand why they did that! Seth got up from the table and started to move restlessly around the kitchen, breaking the silence with his rambling. Kirsten moaned at him, claiming he was more of a hindrance than any help. Ryan watched him as he continued to fidget, refusing to stay still for more than a minute. He remembered Seth's reaction to being locked in the poolhouse at New Year and, again, he seemed to be having trouble being locked in the house, despite its size.

Sandy had also noticed Seth's twitching. Ryan watched as Sandy went over to his son and placed a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Hey, Seth, want to take on your old man on the playstation?" Sandy's voice was strong and reassuring.

Seth nodded and they moved into the family room. Kirsten glanced up at Ryan, following his eyes to Sandy and Seth, reading his thoughts. She looked back towards Ryan.

"Seth has a claustrophobia problem," she said quietly. "He doesn't like to be trapped in anywhere. When he was five and we were living in Berkeley, he woke up in the middle of the night and decided he was hungry. Instead of waking me or Sandy, he went down to the kitchen to find something to eat. We had this little pantry and the lock was broken – a lot of that house was broken – but it meant that you could only open the door from the outside. We'd told him time and time again to make sure if he went into the pantry to wedge the door open with a chair, but he forgot and the door closed behind him. We didn't find him until the next morning. He was in such a state, we had to get the doctors to sedate him to calm him down. He hates being locked in anywhere now."

Ryan nodded silently, watching as Sandy dealt with his son. He knew what to do and say to make Seth relax. Ryan had never had anyone who knew him well enough like that and he envied Seth for it.

"Hey, Ryan, you've got to come check this out. I am totally annihilating Dad!" Seth yelled, breaking Ryan's thoughts.

Ryan looked up at Kirsten, who laughed. "Go on, I can finish up here."

Ryan smiled gratefully and went into the family room, sitting down on the chair, watching as Seth's ninja chopped Sandy's head off repeatedly. Outside, the storm was starting to get worse and in the distance there was a crash of thunder, the noise masked by the sounds of the computer game.

"Kirsten, I need some moral support here! Seth's killing me!" Sandy called to his wife. He frowned when there was no response.

"Kirsten?" he called. Still nothing. He handed the controller to Ryan and wandered into the kitchen. The dishwasher was buzzing and the kitchen was tidy, but there was no sign of Kirsten.

Sandy wandered up stairs. "Kirsten?" he called again when he reached their bedroom.

"In here," a voice came from the closet. Kirsten appeared a few moments later, wearing Sandy's old Berkeley sweater. Sandy smiled at the sight before him. The sweater was way too big on her small frame. Her hair was limp around her face, caused by the countless times she had anxiously run her hands through it.

"Are you ok?" he asked, concerned.

"Yeah, just a bit cold," Kirsten answered.

Sandy walked towards her and wrapped his arms around her, drawing her into his body. Kirsten accepted gratefully, burying her head into his shoulder. She breathed deeply, taking in his smell. Sandy ran his hands up and down her back, trying to comfort her. He felt her arms tighten around his waist as another crash of thunder sounded. The muscles in her shoulders immediately stiffened and Sandy held her closer.

"Do you remember when we were first married and there was that really bad winter storm?" Sandy spoke softly, his voice soothing. "We were living in that tiny house where the heating never worked, so we lit the fire and sat in front of it all night."

Kirsten closed her eyes, listening to his story. She smiled as the memory returned.

"We lived next door to that crazy hippy couple who spent the whole night singing along to their guitar. You were working at that little gallery and you were all excited 'cause they'd just bought some old paintings that you absolutely loved and you wouldn't stop talking about them."

Kirsten nodded into his chest. "You were in your first year at the PD's office, working all the hours you could to make a good impression. God, it was so long ago!"

"No Seth, no Ryan. Just me and you," Sandy said softly, his hands running up her back.

"Hmm. There are some parts I remember like they were yesterday," Kirsten mused.

Sandy looked down at her and raised his eyebrows suggestively. Kirsten smiled back at him, her eyes twinkling. He kissed her, softly at first, and gradually becoming more passionate as his tongue explored her mouth. His hands started to wander over her body as he pushed her gently towards the bed. His lips traced a line of kisses down her neck.

"Sandy, the boys…"

He silenced her with another kiss. His hands had found themselves inside of the oversized sweater she was wearing and he pulled it off easily along with the t-shirt she was wearing underneath. He ran his hands over her stomach and teased the fabric of her bra. He heard her moan softly and knew he was doing well at making her relax. They fell onto the bed.

Kirsten gave up resisting and allowed herself to become lost in his kisses. She could no longer hear the howling wind or the sound of the thunder outside. She ran her hands down his back, tugging at his shirt. It came loose from his trousers and she found his skin, running her hands over his bare back and bringing them round to his chest. She started to fight with the buttons, pulling them undone one-by-one. His lips were still attacking hers, his tongue running over hers. His hands started to move downwards towards her jeans. They found the button…_pop_. They found the zip…

"Mom? Have you seen the latest copy of Batman?"

Seth's voice carried through the house and into their bedroom, bringing his parents back to reality with a bump. Kirsten pushed Sandy off of her, sitting up quickly and listening at the sound of footsteps coming towards their room.

"Um, I think I left it on your bed," Kirsten called out. She paused. The footsteps stopped and they listened as Seth turned around, heading for his bedroom. Kirsten breathed a sigh of relief and looked down at her husband, who was lying flustered on the bed next to her. She laughed. His trousers were bulging, his shirt was hanging off of him and his hair was everywhere. She held out her hand and Sandy took it, pulling himself up to sitting. He kissed her cheek. Kirsten nodded, understanding his frustration, and stood up. She pulled up Sandy behind her, before grabbing her clothes and putting them back on.

"I think I'm going to take a shower," Sandy said. He looked longingly at his wife, wishing she could join him, but with Seth and Ryan in the house he knew that was impossible. Instead, he pulled Kirsten in for one more kiss.

"I love you," Kirsten whispered.

"I love you too."

Kirsten slipped out of his arms and walked towards the door, pausing before she left.

"Sandy?"

"Hmm?"

"You might want to make that shower a cold one."

Kirsten giggled as she left the room, wishing she wasn't leaving Sandy in his excited state. She wandered past Seth's bedroom and looked round the door. Seth's head was buried in a box full of comics, searching for his entertainment for the evening. She smiled and left him, heading downstairs.

Ryan was sat in the family room, killing ninjas from the sofa. He looked up as Kirsten sat down on the sofa next to him. The room was suddenly lit by a flash of lightning and he saw Kirsten's body react in fear.

"Are you ok?" he asked.

"Yeah, just a bit jumpy," Kirsten said, feeling a little embarrassed.

Ryan's eyes moved from Kirsten to the television screen and back to Kirsten.

"Want to take it out on some ninjas?"

Kirsten smiled gratefully. "Sure." She took the controller that Ryan was offering, edging along the sofa closer to him. Ryan loaded a new game and they sat quietly for a while, Kirsten's face a picture of concentration as she tried to figure out what each of the buttons did.

Their moment of peace was shattered suddenly by the sound of footsteps.

"Ok, Ryan, do you want Spiderman or Batman?"

Seth paused when he reached the family room, his eyes widening in shock when he saw Kirsten sat with a playstation controller in her hands. He looked backwards and then into the family room again.

"Ok, have I just wandered into an alternate dimension, or is my mother sat playing computer games?"

>>>>>

Refreshed from his shower, Sandy wandered downstairs to join his family. Under his arm he carried a selection of games that he had hunted through the cupboards for – Clue, Scrabble, Operation, Battleships, even Snakes and Ladders. As he neared the bottom of the stairs, he heard yelling from the family room.

"Mom, you're hurting me!"

"Seth, stop yelling at me!"

"Ryan, would you get her to stop?"

"Kirsten move. Stop throwing things!"

"Mom!"

"Seth, stop screaming in my ear!"

Sandy panicked and quickened his pace, rushing to his screaming family. "What the hell…is…going…on?"

His voice trailed off when he reached them. Kirsten was squashed in the middle of the sofa, with Seth and Ryan sat either side. Kirsten and Seth held controllers in their hands. All three of them turned their heads as Sandy came storming into the room, looking up at him expectantly.

Sandy's mouth hung open as he stared at his family.

"Everything ok?" he asked weakly.

"No! Mom hasn't learnt the difference between good guys and bad guys yet," Seth complained.

"Uh-huh," Sandy muttered.

"Hey, how about a little two-on-two?" Seth suggested, ignorant of Sandy's surprise. "Me and you, Dad: an unbeatable combination."

"Hey!" Kirsten cried indignantly at Seth's favouritism of his father over her.

Seth shrugged and moved from his seat to plug in two extra controllers into the console.

Sandy sat down on the floor by Kirsten's feet and she ran her hand through his hair.

Seth settled back down on the sofa. "Let battle commence!"

Their ninjas started to fight and they all lost themselves in the game in front of them. Sandy and Kirsten fended off criticism from their sons as they struggled to understand what they were supposed to be doing. Seth and Ryan shared glances of frustration, as their parents made mistake after mistake. Suddenly, Kirsten's ninja started to spin violently, killing everyone else on screen.

_"Team 2 wins."_

"Oh! Yes!" Kirsten cried, excited. She frowned when she realised that Sandy, Seth and Ryan were all staring incredulously at her. "What?"

"How did you do that?" Seth spluttered.

Kirsten shrugged. "I have no idea," she answered simply.

Seth grabbed her controller and started to play around with it, hoping to reciprocate what she had just done. "Did you press this? What about the green button? Come on, Mom, you must remember!"

"Seth, I don't know!" Kirsten cried.

Beside her, Ryan started to laugh. His laughter was infectious and both Sandy and Kirsten joined in as Seth scowled. Suddenly, a loud crashing noise sounded outside. Kirsten almost jumped off of the sofa. They all wandered over to the back door and looked out of the glass. Outside, they could see the garden table upside down in the pool. The glass on one side of the poolhouse was completely smashed and they could just about see the outline of garden furniture lying on its side.

Ryan looked sheepishly at Kirsten, who gave him a look that said, "I told you so". Kirsten's body shook and Sandy slipped his arm around her waist, pulling her backwards.

"Come on, let's move away from the window, huh?"

They moved back into the kitchen.

"So, what now? More ninjas?" Seth suggested. "Except, I'm on mom's side this time."

"Hey!" It was Sandy's turn to be insulted.

"I'm not sure I can take any more ninjas, Seth," Kirsten said, wearily.

"Ok, how about a movie? Anything to stop dad from making us play one of those board games I saw him bring downstairs," Seth said.

Sandy shook his head. "You know, when I was a kid…"

"Oh, not again," Seth groaned. Even Kirsten rolled her eyes.

Sandy ignored his son. "…we didn't have computer games, or even a television. Whatever happened to good old, traditional family fun?"

"The invention of electricity?" Seth asked, feigning innocence. He ducked as Sandy's hand playfully threatened to swipe his head.

And then the lights went out.


	4. Part Four

**Disclaimer: The usual OC disclaimer still applies; also anything in the next two chapters that looks like it should be disclaimed, I don't own that either. **

**These are the final two chapters guys! I'm sorry it's taken me so long to finish the story, I got stuck on chapter 4 but I was in the most boring lecture EVER on Friday and my mind started to wander…and this is what I got! **

**Thank you so much for all the reviews – Christina, Sunny, AA Battery, Oclover1, Michelle, Pumpkin Muffin, Kylie, Jen, langevin05, anon, Steph, FriendsHolic, Nikki, Jo, Lauren and retrorocks66. **

**I hope you like it! **

**Part Four**

It was quiet in the Cohen's kitchen for a moment as the irony of Seth's words sunk in. Only in some cheesy high school TV show would something like this happen.

"You had to go and jinx it, didn't you, Seth?" Sandy's voice sounded first.

"How is this my fault?" Seth asked indignantly.

"Ow, that was my foot," Ryan complained.

"Sorry," Sandy apologised.

"Argh, who put the kitchen island there?" Seth cried.

They started to move around the kitchen, bumping into each other and several large inanimate objects. Cries of "Mmph" and "Ow" echoed around the kitchen. There was a loud crashing sound as someone sent a vase of flowers crashing.

"Hey, careful!" Sandy said.

"It wasn't me!" Seth denied.

"Well, it wasn't me either," Ryan said.

Sandy was suddenly aware that, in all the commotion, Kirsten had been silent.

"Kirsten?" his voice was etched with worry.

All of a sudden, the kitchen was lit up. Sandy, Seth and Ryan looked up towards where the light was coming from and saw Kirsten pointing a torch towards them, her other hand resting on her hip, and a smile on her face. Three more torches sat on the worktop next to her.

"What did I do to get a family like you, huh?" she said, amused.

Sandy grinned. "I knew there was a reason I married you!"

He moved towards her, slipping one hand around her waist and the other finding her hand, switching off the torch. The kitchen was plunged into darkness again and Sandy's lips found Kirsten's. His hand grazed over her ass and Kirsten giggled.

"Eugh, gross! Would you guys cut it out?" Seth moaned. Just because he couldn't see them didn't mean he couldn't hear them.

Disentangling herself from her husband, Kirsten switched her torch back on and proceeded to hand out the rest to her family. Seth started to switch his torch on and off, constantly, until Kirsten snatched it from his hands.

"Hey!" Seth cried.

"You'll get it back if you promise to behave like an adult," Kirsten scolded him like a five-year-old, her voice teasing him. She held her torch up, the light blinding his eyes like he was being interrogated.

"Ow! Yes, yes, I promise," Seth said.

"So, now what do we do?" Ryan asked.

Everyone stared blankly at each other – there was no television, no video games and no CD player.

"How about a board game?" Sandy suggested.

Before anyone could answer, the telephone began to ring. Seth was the first to reach out for it, desperate to avoid any family-bonding time. He knew too well what his parents were like.

"Hello? Hey, Summer. Yeah, us too."

Seth wandered out of the kitchen and towards the front room.

"Looks like it's your choice, Ryan," Sandy said. Ryan surveyed the choices in front of him. He hadn't played a board game in years – in fact, he couldn't remember ever sitting down with Dawn and Trey like this. His mom's idea of spending quality time together was taking them all to Reno so that she could gamble away all her savings on the blackjack table.

"How about Scrabble?" Ryan said.

"Scrabble it is," Sandy said. "Why don't you set it up and I'll go get Seth."

Sandy walked through the kitchen towards the sound of Seth's voice. He was lying on one of the sofas, his feet resting on one arm. Sandy playfully clipped Seth's ear to get his attention.

"Come on, Ryan chose Scrabble and you're not getting out of it," Sandy said.

Seth rolled his eyes. "Summer, I've got to go. The parental units are forcing us to spend some quality time together."

He hung up the phone and followed Sandy back to the kitchen.

"So, how are things with you and Summer these days?" Sandy asked. "You guys still, uh, having fun?"

Seth shot his father a look, knowing where this conversation was heading. Sandy sighed. "Ok, ok. Are you being careful?"

"Dad!" Seth groaned.

"Answer the question," Sandy ordered.

"Yes, Dad, we're being careful," Seth answered. He was still mortified by the conversation they had had on Valentine's Day; he didn't need a repeat. He hurried into the kitchen to avoid any further questioning.

Ryan had set up the Scrabble board and Kirsten had laid out an assortment of snacks and drinks for everybody. Candles lit the kitchen. Sandy couldn't help but smile – despite Kirsten's neurosis, she was organised. They settled around the table and began to play.

Cake – kettle – lion – neck – empty – train – ninja.

Words were formed and jokes were made as the game continued. It was Sandy's turn and he started to put his letters down on the board.

X-A-N-A-D-U

Seth frowned, Ryan looked puzzled and Kirsten shook her head in amusement.

"Sandy, Xanadu's not really a word," Kirsten said.

"Of course it is," Sandy argued.

"No, it's not," Kirsten laughed.

"What about the song?" Sandy said.

"What song?" Ryan asked.

"Oh, don't!" Kirsten cried.

_"A place where nobody dared to go; the love that we came to know; they call it Xanadu,"_ Sandy started to sing.

Seth groaned and stuck his fingers in his ears.

_"Xanadu, Xanadu; now we are here in Xanadu."_

"Sandy, stop!" Kirsten laughed, digging her elbows into Sandy's body playfully.

Sandy wrapped his arms around her waist, nuzzling into her neck.

_"A million lights are dancing and there you are; a shooting star, an everlasting world; and you're here with me eternally,"_ he sung softly into her ear.

"Oh, please, stop! You're making me nauseas," Seth complained.

Kirsten leaned into Sandy and kissed his cheek. "Sandy, I'm still not letting you have it."

Sandy pouted as he took his letters off the board and Kirsten laughed again.

"Is it over yet?" Seth asked, unblocking his ears.

Ryan still looked confused. Sandy gaped at him, astonished.

"Xanadu? Olivia Newton-John?"

Ryan shook his head. Sandy shook his head in disbelief. "Son, I can see I have a lot to teach you."

"Come on, Dad. Ryan hasn't done anything wrong. If you're going to inflict Olivia Newton-John on him, at least wait until he's punched someone," Seth defended.

"Seth!" Kirsten admonished, trying to hide a smile from her face.

"Olivia Newton-John? She's the one from Grease, right?" Ryan questioned.

Kirsten nodded. "She was Sandy's first crush."

"She was," Sandy agreed. "Your mother and I saw her in concert when we were at college."

A look of disgust spread over Seth's face. "You saw Olivia Newton-John in concert?"

Kirsten nodded, her expression conveying her embarrassment, and she rested her head in one hand. "Your father queued for 7 hours to buy front row tickets. They showed it on TV and there we were, right at the front. I thought we would have got away with it too, but no – apparently it was on the big screen in the college bar."

Ryan laughed at Kirsten's deadpan voice as she recounted the story while Seth looked horrified that he was related to two people who were seen at an Olivia Newton-John concert.

"Who else have you seen in concert?" Ryan asked, eager to hear more stories.

"Kirsten dragged me to a Duran Duran concert when we were first married," Sandy offered.

"Ah, Simon Le Bon, now we're talking," Kirsten smiled. "1985 at the Ritz in New York."

"You're a Duran Duran fan?" Ryan asked, amused.

Kirsten nodded.

"Her college room was plastered in posters, it was disgusting," Sandy said. Kirsten laughed.

"I guess I have both Jesus and Moses to thank for not inheriting either of your tastes in music," Seth sneered.

"Ha, if you can call that noise you listen to music," Kirsten countered.

"Well, now you're just showing your age, mother," Seth teased, ducking when Kirsten threw a W at his head.

"What about you, Ryan? Who was your first crush?" Sandy asked.

Ryan lowered his head bashfully.

"Come on, buddy, give it up. Who was it?" Seth jibed.

"My mom was a big fan of the Waltons. And, you know, Mary-Ellen was kinda cute…" he trailed off as Seth dissolved into a fit of giggles.

"Hey, at least she's a real person!" Sandy said.

Seth stopped laughing and looked up at his father. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Don't you remember your little obsession when you were seven?"

Seth glared at his father, who glared back with a teasing glint in his eyes.

"Who?" Ryan asked.

Seth shook his head at Sandy, who ignored his son's pleading stare as he answered, "Catwoman."

Ryan frowned. "You mean, Michelle Pfeiffer?"

Kirsten started to laugh as Sandy shook his head, looking sorrowful. "No. The _cartoon_ character."

Ryan joined in with Kirsten's laughing. Seth crossed his arms and leant back in his chair.

"Yeah, yeah, you can laugh all you want. Dad's always had a thing about Arial in the Little Mermaid," Seth said.

"Ok, that's enough," Kirsten said between her giggles, stopping the teasing before it went too far. Secretly, though, she loved her family's easy banter and it pleased her to know that Ryan felt comfortable enough around them to share his most embarrassing secrets.

They carried on playing. Sandy eventually won at Scrabble, Kirsten successfully guessed the murderer in Clue, Seth's steady hand made him the best doctor out of them all and Ryan beat them all out of their matches in a game of poker.

One game each. Kirsten saw Ryan stifle a yawn and checked her watch. It was 12.45am. The thunder and lightning had passed, but the wind was still howling outside. Kirsten could hear the rustling of the trees and the thud of garden furniture crashing against each other. It made her nervous, and she was glad that everyone was inside the house.

"Ok boys, time for bed," Kirsten ordered. She waited for them to protest, like they normally did when she sent them to bed, but this time they agreed without any argument.

Sandy slipped his hand around Kirsten's as all four of them walked out of the kitchen. They paused at the bottom of the stairs.

"Sleep well, boys," Kirsten said. Impulsively, she leant in and kissed them both lightly on the cheek. Seth accepted it, as usual. Ryan was a little surprised at the gesture but he placed his hand gently on Kirsten's back as she leaned into him.

"I had fun tonight," he said quietly.

"Me too," Kirsten said, smiling fondly at him.

All of a sudden, the electricity came back. The lights came on and everybody squeezed their eyes shut, cowering from the brightness. From the family room, the television blasted out sound.

"I got it," Sandy said, going back to switch off the television.

Kirsten saw Ryan cover another yawn. "Bed, now. See you in the morning."

She watched her sons walk upstairs to their bedrooms, hearing their laughter as they went. She smiled; she liked having Ryan in the house. She knew he would never agree to moving inside permanently – he liked having his own space – but for tonight, Kirsten would enjoy having all of her family under the same roof.

The house was quiet once again. Sandy came back through the kitchen, switching off the lights as he came. He grinned his usual sheepish grin as he approached his wife. He slipped his arm around her waist when he reached her, pulling her body towards his and kissing her temple.

"Come on, let's get you to bed too, huh?"


	5. Part Five

**The last instalment is basically a little Kandified chapter because, well, I can't help it! I'm also trying to erase "the kiss" from my mind (and I haven't even watched it yet!). Damn you, Sandy Cohen.**

**Part Five**

Sandy woke at half past three to find himself alone in the bed. He frowned and propped his body up on his elbows, listening. He expected to hear a noise in the bathroom…nothing. As his vision focussed in the dark, he looked around the bedroom for some sign of his wife…nothing.

He dragged his feet out of the bed and sat up, rubbing his eyes. He shivered. The house was unusually cold. He could hear the wind outside and the rain pounding on the windows.

_'Why did the house have to have so many damn windows?'_ he wondered.

He pulled on his bathrobe and wandered down to the house. He paused on the way, collecting something from one of the bookshelves as he walked past. He could hear the faint hum of the television in the family room. Quietly he wandered through the house and found Kirsten sat in the middle of the sofa, her legs tucked up underneath her and a blanket pulled around her body up to her chin.

"Hey," Sandy said softly, not wanting to scare her.

Kirsten's head turned to look up at him. Sandy immediately noticed the dark circles beginning to form under her eyes. He could see the tiredness in her eyes.

"Hey. What are you doing up?"

"I was going to ask you the same question," Sandy answered, settling down on the sofa next to her. "Couldn't sleep?"

Kirsten shook her head. "I didn't want to disturb you."

Sandy's left hand reached up to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. Kirsten smiled, comforted by his touch.

"What are you watching?" he asked.

Kirsten shrugged. "Nothing really. I'm starting to wonder why we have so many channels. I was watching this cookery programme, it was all about making chicken in lemon sauce, it looked delicious; but, you know, since I can't even cook a frozen pizza without setting off the smoke alarms, I thought it might be a little bit too much right now. I was also watching this documentary about lion cubs, but one got eaten by a cheetah and I couldn't watch it any more. I was gonna try the boys' ninja game again but I couldn't figure out how to turn the damn machine on."

Sandy laughed as Kirsten rambled, a trait that didn't show itself very often. Kirsten looked indignant.

"What?"

Sandy shook his head, nothing, and cupped her face with his hands, pulling her in for a deep kiss. "I love you."

Kirsten smiled. "I love you too."

Sandy reached his arms around her and she gratefully snuggled into Sandy's body, accepting the comfort that his arms offered.

"Tonight was good, right? Fun?" Kirsten questioned.

"Yeah, I think so, why?"

"I don't know. It feels like we don't spend much time together as a family any more. I mean, with work and school and girlfriends…" Kirsten's thoughts trailed off. "Seth's grown up so much since last summer, and Ryan's always been older than his years. They'll be going off to college soon and I just…I just don't want to miss anything, you know? Am I being silly?"

"No, you're being a mother," Sandy said softly, running his fingers down her face. _God, he loved the way this woman thought._

They drifted into silence. Twenty years together meant that words weren't always necessary. Kirsten dropped her head onto Sandy's chest and she felt it move up and down, becoming slower and more rhythmic as he started to fall asleep.

Kirsten shifted her body so that she could look at her husband. His eyes were closed and his mouth hung open slightly, his head tilting to one side. Kirsten reached up and covered his mouth with her own, coaxing him out of his slumber.

"Hmmm."

"You should go back to bed and get some sleep," Kirsten said.

Sandy gazed down at his wife. He could get used to being woken like that – it definitely beats an alarm clock. "Only if you come with me," he answered, hoping to persuade her.

"I don't think I'd be able to sleep," Kirsten said, her brow furrowing slightly.

"Well, we don't have to _sleep_," Sandy said, suggestively. Kirsten giggled. Sandy embraced her in another deep kiss, rubbing his hands over her back.

Another crash of garden furniture sounded from outside and Kirsten broke away from their kiss, sighing irritably. She wished she could block the storm out of her head, but she couldn't. She felt like a silly young girl, who needed her hand to be held as the big scary storm blew outside.

Sandy planted a kiss on her forehead. "It's ok," he soothed.

Kirsten sat up. "Go to bed," she ordered. "At least one of us should get some sleep tonight."

She could hear the words spoken out loud, but her subconscious pleaded with him to stay.

"No," Sandy refused, firmly. He playfully stuck his tongue out at her and got the response he was after when she laughed.

"Sandy…" Kirsten started.

"If you're staying, I'm staying," Sandy interrupted her objection. "Give me some of that."

Sandy pulled at the blanket that covered her so that it spread over both of them.

"You don't have to stay," Kirsten said.

_'Stay,'_ her mind begged.

"I know. But my left side gets all cold when you're not there," Sandy pouted.

Kirsten laughed. He knew that she wanted him to stay and she loved him for it.

"Anyway, I brought entertainment with me," Sandy continued, reaching for the book that he had grabbed on his way downstairs.

_To Kill A Mockingbird._ More memories from the first storm they had shared together when they were first married. It was Sandy's favourite book. They had wrapped themselves up in a blanket, curling up in front of the fire, and Sandy had read it aloud until Kirsten had finally fallen asleep. Kirsten smiled and settled back into his embrace, resting her head in the crook of his neck.

"When he was nearly thirteen my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow…" Sandy started to read, his voice low and soothing. His chest rumbled as he spoke.

He didn't get very far into the story before he realised that Kirsten had fallen asleep. He smiled; some things hadn't changed. Carefully, he closed the book and placed it on the table, trying not to disturb his sleeping wife. He considered carrying her up to their bedroom but he decided against it – she was finally asleep and he didn't want to risk waking her up again. He pulled the blanket around her shoulders and settled back into the sofa, closing his eyes and finally falling back into the slumber that had been calling to him for the past hour.

>>>>>

Kirsten woke the next morning to the sound of cluttering pans. Her eyelids were still heavy from the lack of sleep and she struggled to open them, her other senses kicking in first.

"Hmph. Do I smell bacon?"

From behind her, she felt Sandy move. "Do I smell coffee?"

"Good morning, sleepyheads," Seth's voice rang out. Kirsten opened her eyes to see her son towering above them, two mugs of coffee in his hands. "You're both right. I have coffee and Ryan is cooking breakfast."

Kirsten slowly became aware of her surroundings. She was lying along the sofa, her head resting on a cushion on Sandy's lap. Sandy's upper body had fallen sideways, his head resting on his left arm, which was resting on Kirsten's hip, and his face buried into the blanket that still covered them.

"What time is it?" Sandy asked, sitting up and stretching his arms above his head.

"Almost nine," Seth answered, putting the mugs down onto the table in front of them and walking back into the kitchen.

Kirsten uncurled her legs and sat up next to Sandy. They exchanged sleepy smiles.

"Did you sleep ok?" Sandy asked.

"Yeah," Kirsten said, leaning in and kissing him softly. "Thank you for staying with me last night."

"The pleasure was all mine," Sandy replied, accepting another kiss from his wife.

"Hey, that's enough of that, you guys," Seth scolded them from the kitchen table. "Breakfast is ready."

Sandy and Kirsten headed into the kitchen and greeted Ryan with "good mornings" before settling down at the table, where Seth was already waiting impatiently.

Ryan watched from the stove as he waited for the last pancakes to be ready – Sandy's gentle teasing of his son, Seth's sarcastic comebacks and Kirsten's gentle placating responses.

Ryan hoped that another storm would hit Orange County soon.

**>>>>>**

**That's it guys, thanks for reading! I'm feeling very accomplished now, it's the first story I've completed that's longer than a one-shot! I hope you enjoyed it. :)**


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